Hospital Garment

ABSTRACT

A hospital garment is provided. The hospital garment includes a garment body having a back panel, a front panel, a right shoulder portion, and a left shoulder portion. The back panel and the front panel are detachably coupled to one another via a plurality of fasteners. A plurality of snap buttons are disposed on the right shoulder portion and the left shoulder portion. Each shoulder portion includes a male snap button disposed on the front panel that mates with a female snap button disposed on the back panel to removably attach the shoulder portions. The back panel includes an opening that converges to a termination point. The opening on the back panel can be closed via a tie fastener. A detachable pocket is disposed on the front panel that provides access to the chest region of a user. The hospital garment provides greater coverage and privacy than standard hospital gowns.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to garments to be worn by patients. More particularly, the present invention relates to garments worn by patients while receiving medical treatment or while being examined and more particularly, in receiving treatments involving tubes inserted into the patient's body, such as for dialysis, catheters, etc.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention concerns garments to be worn by patients while receiving medical treatment or while being examined. More particularly, the garment provides an opening for receiving treatments involving tubes inserted into the patient's body, such as for dialysis, catheters, etc. The need to obtain access to certain sites on a patient's body for examination or treatment requires that a patient wear a hospital gown. Such gowns are not suitable for regular wear and do not allow a patient to be inhibited while moving about a hospital or other facility since they have large openings enabling ready access by medical personnel for examination or treatments. It would be desirable if such garments could be practically worn when commuting to the hospital or other medical facility to save time.

Tubes are typically taped to be held in position, but this has been found to be ineffective as the tape comes loose as the patient moves about. While garments have been developed, which have improved the casualness of these garments, the problem regarding effective attachment of the tubes while moving about has not been satisfactorily solved. Therefore, there is a need for a garment which is suitable as lounge wear and also secures the tubes in position so as to allow the patient to move about freely. There is a need for garments suitable for male and female patients of all ages that are adapted to accommodate intrusive medical devices so as to provide modesty for the patient, security for the medical devices, and access to the patient and the devices by medical personnel and the patient.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of patient garments now present in the prior art, the present invention provides a new and improved hospital garment wherein the same can be utilized for providing convenience for the user when receiving treatment at a hospital.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved hospital garment that has all of the advantages of the prior art and none of the disadvantages.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a hospital garment including a garment body having a back panel, a front panel, a right shoulder portion, and a left shoulder portion. The back panel and the front panel are detachably coupled to one another via a plurality of fasteners along a side of the back panel and the front panel.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a hospital garment including a plurality of snap buttons disposed on the right shoulder portion and the left shoulder portion. Each shoulder portion includes a male snap button disposed on the front panel that mates with a female snap button disposed on the back panel to removably attach the shoulder portions together.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a hospital garment including a back panel having an opening that converges to a termination point. The opening on the back panel can be closed via a tie fastener.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a hospital garment including a detachable pocket disposed on the front panel that provides access to the chest region of a user.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a hospital garment that is configured to provide greater coverage and privacy than standard hospital gowns.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DRAWINGS

Although the characteristic features of this invention will be particularly pointed out in the claims, the invention itself and manner in which it may be made and used may be better understood after a review of the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein like numeral annotations are provided throughout.

FIG. 1 shows a front view of the hospital garment according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of the hospital garment according to one embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Reference is made herein to the attached drawings. Like reference numerals are used throughout the drawings to depict like or similar elements of the hospital garment. For the purposes of presenting a brief and clear description of the present invention, the preferred embodiment will be discussed as used during medical examination or the like. The figures are intended for representative purposes only and should not be considered to be limiting in any respect.

Referring now to FIG. 1, there is shown a front view of the hospital garment according to one embodiment of the present invention. The hospital garment comprises a garment body 100 having a back panel 102, a front panel 104, a right shoulder portion 106, and a left shoulder portion 108. The garment body 100 resembles an elongated robe having a neck portion and sleeves. The back panel 102 and the front panel 104 are detachably coupled to one another via a plurality of fasteners 110. The plurality of fasteners 110 are preferably affixed along a side of the back panel 102 and the front panel 104. The fasteners, preferably are made of non-metal materials, and may be any suitable attachment means such as hook and loop fasteners (e.g., Velcro®, snaps, buttons, zippers or the like.) The garment body 100 is fabricated from any fabric material, including but not limited to cotton, rayon, lycra, acrylic, polyester, paper, wool, linen, silk, and/or various combinations thereof.

In another embodiment, the garment body 100 is open on the right side from the underarm down to the end of garment body 100, and can also have a series of fasteners 110, such as ties, that extend down the length of the front panel 104. The ties fasten the front panel 104 to the back panel 102. The ties can be fitted through adjacent apertures in the back panel 102 and then knotted to provide a detachable connection between the front panel 104 and the back panel 102. In this configuration, the gown overlaps from the right side when the garment body 100 is secured around the patient in a manner similar to the securing of a robe around the body. The detachable connection provides medical personnel easy access to the body of the wearer.

The shoulder portions 106, 108 comprise a front portion and a back portion that detachably connect to form each shoulder. Each shoulder portion 106, 108 includes a plurality of fasteners, preferably snap buttons 112, disposed on each panel 102, 104. The snap buttons 112 are disposed on opposing sides of right shoulder portion 106 and the left shoulder portion 108. Preferably, the male snap buttons are disposed on the front panel 104 of each shoulder 106, 108 and mate with the female snap buttons disposed on the back panel 102 of each shoulder 106, 108.

The back panel 102 and the front panel 104 are removably attached to one another to form the garment body 100. The back panel 102 includes an opening that provides access to the upper back of the patient. The opening converges to a termination point 114 on the back panel 102 forming a V-shaped opening extending from the neckline of the back panel 102. The hospital garment of the present invention provides a gown that comprises a single piece of fabric with folds, flaps, and button clasps that help cover up patients and offer them privacy.

Referring now to FIG. 2, there is shown a perspective view of the hospital garment according to one embodiment of the present invention. The hospital garment comprises a dual-sided unitary garment. The garment body 100 includes an elongated garment body having sleeves. The front panel 104 of the garment body includes a detachable pocket 116. The detachable pocket 116 is configured to provide access to an opening located over the upper chest on the front panel 104. The detachable pocket 116 includes a fabric panel sewn into the front panel 104 across a bottom edge of the detachable pocket 116. In addition the opening is removably secured via hook and loop fasteners. Preferably, the hook and loop fasteners are affixed to an upper edge on an interior side of the detachable pocket 116 and the front panel 104. In this way, the bottom edge of the pocket 116 is sewn into the front panel and the upper edge of the pocket 116 is secured to the front panel 104 via a fastener. This enables the panel to be folded down to expose the opening to allow access to the wearer's body at the site at the opening, as for insertion of tubes or other medical devices.

In alternative embodiments, the garment body 100 can include a variety of styles. These styles include embodiments that have a variety of degrees of neck coverage ranging from full coverage, such as that found in turtlenecks, to partial neck coverage such as that found in various styles of collared shirts. Some styles can also provide no neck coverage, such as that found in t-shirts or V-necked shirts; any degree of torso coverage, ranging from full coverage, such as that found in a sweater, to limited coverage like those found in a midriff-bearing top. Furthermore, other styles include embodiments having a variety of degrees of arm coverage ranging from full coverage, such as that found in long sleeved shirts or blouses, to substantially no arm coverage like those found in tank tops.

In the exemplary embodiment, the garment body 100 is a single piece of fabric, wherein the back panel 106 can be folded to form the hospital garment, similar to a robe. The garment body 100 is secured to a user by tying the back panel 106 to the front panel 104 via the plurality of tie fasteners 110. A user can then close the opening in the back panel 106 by binding the tie fastener 110 disposed along the length of the back panel 106 opening. Next, the male and female snap buttons 112 on the shoulder portions 106, 108 are secured to connect the back and front panels 102, 104 of the shoulder portions 106, 108. In this way, the garment 100 is particularly advantageous as it offers doctors and nurses access to the patient's body while still covering the majority of the body.

It is therefore submitted that the instant invention has been shown and described in what is considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments. It is recognized, however, that departures may be made within the scope of the invention and that obvious modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art. With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention.

Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention. 

I claim:
 1. A hospital garment comprising: a garment body having a back panel, a front panel, a right shoulder portion, and a left shoulder portion, wherein the back panel and the front panel are detachably coupled to one another via a plurality of fasteners; a plurality of snap buttons disposed on the right shoulder portion and the left shoulder portion, wherein each shoulder portion includes a male snap button disposed on the front panel that mates with a female snap button disposed on the back panel; an opening on the back panel of the garment body, wherein the opening converges to a termination point on the back panel; a detachable pocket disposed on the front panel providing access to an opening that allows access to a user's chest region.
 2. The hospital garment of claim 1, wherein the back panel includes a fastener configured to close the opening on the back panel.
 3. The hospital garment of claim 1, wherein the plurality of fasteners are located along one side on the front panel and the back panel.
 4. The hospital garment of claim 3, wherein the plurality of fasteners includes a tie fastener.
 5. The hospital garment of claim 1, wherein the detachable pocket is adapted to detach from the garment body via a hook and loop fastener. 